025: 4 Simple Parenting Habits for a Stress-Free School Day Morning [Podcast]

I know first hand how stressful school day mornings can be. At the time of this writing, we are getting back into the school day routine. Some parents dread getting back into the school routine. All they see is grumpy kids, angry parents, and late arrivals.

A few years ago, that was a typical morning for us. We decided enough was enough. We sat down to diagnose the problem. You know what we discovered? We were the reason for most of the stress. We had not set up our kids or our schedule for success.

It is kind of like taking a 2 year old to the grocery store in the afternoon instead of letting him have a nap. Is his bad behavior in the grocery store entirely his fault?

4 Simple Parenting Habits for a Stress-Free School Day Morning

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Here are some simple routines we started to have a stress-free school day morning.

1. Prepare the Night Before

My wife is great at preparing. It is her strength. She has the kids’ clothes ready to go. We also have created a place for all the book bags to be hung by the door to the garage. This eliminates the need to do last-minute searching for the kids’ book bags. What can you do the night before that will eliminate a to do from your morning routine?

2. Create Margin in Your Morning Commute

Most of us already know this but we just don’t do it. Why do we figure out the absolute last minute we need to leave? You can save yourself much heartache by bumping your “have to leave” time by 10 minutes. Creating a bit of margin in your routine can work wonders.

3. Provide a Devotional Thought for the Day

We also built a few minutes into our routine to share some wisdom with our kids. As they are eating their breakfast, I will share with them a verse from the Bible or a quote that offers a great teaching moment. I want them to start off their day right. This helps them create a desire for learning and growing.

4. Give Positive Words of Affirmation

We all have bad mornings from time to time. Our thoughts will guide our behaviors. Everyday as the kids leave for school, I offer positive words of how great the day is going to be. I always end it by saying “Make it a great day for someone.”

I want them to know that life is not all about them, but it is about others. You find greater purpose in this life when you love others more than you love yourself. Kindness happens when we create margin in our lives. Kindness happens when we seek it out.

Jonathan has been blogging since 2009 and is still in awe that the Creator of the Universe desires to have a relationship with him. His passions include spending time with his kids, reading, March Madness, surprise get-a-way trips with his wife, and watching funny YouTube videos.

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6 thoughts on “025: 4 Simple Parenting Habits for a Stress-Free School Day Morning [Podcast]”

I wholeheartedly believe in preparing the night before. I find that the nights I am too tired to prepare for the next day leaves me 3 steps behind the next morning, and I start my day rushed and frustrated. Which in turn, that frustration gets projected on my family. Not a good way to start the day for any of us.

As a mom and school counselor, I think this is a terrific set of ideas, especially allowing the margin for the morning commute and devotion/affirmation. More children would arrive at school ready to learn if they followed your guidelines.

Those are good tips, Jonathan. For the past few years I’ve had my daughter, who is still in elementary school, choose her clothes for the week on Sunday. (Depending on what we’re doing, her deadline is before lunch or before dinner.) She loves to check the weather forecast. I love handling style disagreements when we aren’t tired or rushed. (“No, you can’t wear the tie-dyed tights with the plaid skirt.”)